Sophie Howard’s equine sculptures are currently adding form and texture to our horsey promenade. Why not pop in and have a look at our ‘Horseplay’ exhibition?

Sophie Howard studied scuplture at Winchester School of Art and graduated in 1979. Since then she has continued to be a practicing sculptor. She has made over 30 portrait commissions, architural details for historic house renovations and created several works for national television. In addition to following her own development as an artist, between 1988 and 2005 she designed garden statuary for several leading manufacturers. She has been employed in arts education in a number of roles including residencies, arts workshops for serious offenders and teaching Art and Design. She currently acts as a mentor and creative industries business advisor with BRAVE the enterprise agency, and ArtsMatrix, part time, as well as occasional sculpture teaching.

Sophie makes forms from clay and other materials, including willow and driftwood. Her subjects are people, animals, movement and pure forms, and the connections between all of these. Much of her work is cast into terracotta and resin as well as bronze.

Sophie’s sculpture is represented in a number of galleries in England, Scotland and Wales.

Our current exhibition ‘Horseplay’, exploring the equine form, features the work of several wonderful local artists including Ramzieh Baj. Why not pop in and have a look for yourself?

Ramzieh Baj was born in Jordan of Circassian parents from the Caucasus region of Russia. An honours graduate in fine art from the University of Baghdad, where she studied under Faiq Hassan, she taught art before taking up a British Council scholarship to pursue her post-graduate studies in Brighton from which she graduated with distinction in painting. She was awarded an MA in Fine Art Printmaking from Cambridge School of Art in 2008; her dissertation was on ‘Globalisation and Issue Based Art’.

Ramzieh has lived and worked in Iraq, Yugoslavia, Egypt, Qatar (where she lectured in art at the University), Botswana, Algeria, and Senegal, and now lives outside the village of Little Walden between Cambridge and Saffron Walden.

Our Horseplay exhibition is still on, why don’t you pop in and see it for yourself? One of our fantastic Artists is Painter Gena Ivanov…

Gena is orignally Russian, born in 1968 in Vladimir to a military family. He began to draw at school but at that time modern dance took most of his energies and interest. He went into the army and served for two years as a military artist. Art then firmly in his soul, he studied at Bobruisk Art College where he graduated with a distinction.

He then took a residency in a museum in Bobruisk and later set himself up working in his own studio by painting and working as an interior designer. In 2000 he was elected to the Artist’s Union in Belarus and in 2004 came to work in England. Gena now has a studio in Norwich and also a gallery in a popular shopping street in Norwich city centre. In 2009 he enrolled at Norwich University College of the Arts to read for a Masters in Fine Art from which he has recently graduated.

“My practice is primarily painting and poetry, the two forms working together to tell a story, the poetry illustrating the thinking behind my painted work – a turn around of normality. It tells of my constant grapple with what life means, to me and to the rest of the world.

My work is the interface between what takes place within my head, my body and how that relates to my environment and the people in it. It is intensely felt and expressed, often through the physicality of my self and my body. The paintings are often large, requiring a large physical involvement to paint them.

My work has changed a lot since I left USSR and settled in Norwich. The style I was taught in USSR was very traditional and experimenting was not encouraged. I became accustomed to painting work for sale in my gallery, but ultimately I found this constraining. The MA in Fine Art has enabled me and freed my work so that I have been able to develop some of my thinking and create a new pathway. I will continue to develop what I have started during this time.

I am on a journey through life, and my work is documenting my progress. At the same time, it is part of my progress and a journey that will continue as long as I live. It is my life.”

Yolande Kenny’s exquisite and characterful paintings and drawings are currently part of our ‘Horseplay’ exhibition. Why not pop in and have a look for yourself?

Yolandé Kenny graduated from Central St Martin’s, University of Arts London, with a First Class BA (Hons) in Fine Art. Her work is found in public and private collections around Europe.

“Horses are incredibly beautiful to paint. They are both graceful and powerful, gentle yet strong. Their coats gleam in the sunlight and manes float in the wind. They move with effortless immense power, muscles, from legs to neck, rhythmically flex in unison. As running machines, they are engineered to perfection. Some of my oils simply try to capture these graceful characteristics of a horse.

Other paintings capture the moment of eye contact between the horse and me. Horses seem to observe us in a curiously knowing and tender way. The space between us is more than physical. It’s a species divide too, yet for a moment it’s as though there’s a connection in thoughts, something that bonds the human and animal gaze, and something that breaks down established boundaries. The many differences subside and there’s no hierarchy. My paintings capture that connection, allowing us to rethink what it means to be human and part of the natural world where everything has an integral role and equal status.”

Yolandé uses muted tones and small detail and her intention is to seek an intimate and quiet, but intense, relationship with the viewer. She paints on stretched canvas or linen, which is prepared by sizing and then applying several base coats of Gesso. Each coat is gently sanded when dry to remove the rough qualities of the material, without taking away its natural weave. Using Old Masters’ techniques, several layers of transparent oils are then applied, to embrace a surface illusion of undulating form and depth.

After growing up in Derby, and initially developing a successful career based around car design, Yolandé took the difficult step of changing career direction to follow a life-long desire to paint. She now lives and works in Hertfordshire. Besides art, her interests include photography, animal welfare and yoga.

Horse Portrait Commissions Available

Portraits of your horse available in Oil and Graphite in a variety of sizes.

Artist Yolande Kenny’s sensitive horse portraits perfectly capture the nature and character of these exquisite animals. Yolande takes commissions, so if you are interested in having your horse painted please ask at the desk and we will put you in touch.

This spring we look at the beauty, elegance, grace and spirit of the equine form, celebrating these beautiful creatures with an exhibiton entitled ‘Horseplay’. Running from the 31st March until the 19th May we do hope you get a chance to pop in and see the wonderful paintings, sculptures and prints from selected local artists with a passion for horse portraiture.

Yolande Kenny – Paintings and Drawings

Gena Ivanov – Watercolour Paintings

Ramzieh Baj – Paintings and Prints

Sophie Howard – Sculpture

Watch this space as there are more blogs to follow on our fantastic ‘Horseplay’ artists!